The Battle of Guillemont saw acts of heroism by Chavasse, the only man to be awarded the Victoria Cross twice during the First World War.

It is said he got as close as 25 yards to the German line, where he found three men and continued throughout the night under a constant rain of sniper bullets and bombing.

He performed similar heroics in the early stages of the offensive at Passchendaele in August 1917 to gain a second VC and become the most highly decorated British officer of the First World War.

In all, there were seven children born to the Chavasse family, in age order: Dorothea, Christopher, Noel, Edith, Mary, Francis and Aidan.

The twins were so small and weak at birth that their baptism was delayed until 29 December 1884, and both were very ill with typhoid in their first year of life.

In early 1913, after discussions with some of his fellow doctors, Chavasse applied for and was accepted by the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC); he was commissioned as a lieutenant on 2 June.

Chavasse was first awarded the VC for his actions on 9 August 1916, at Guillemont, France, when he attended to the wounded all day under heavy fire.

The full citation was published on 24 October 1916 and read:[11] Captain Noel Godfrey Chavasse, M.C., M.B., Royal Army Medical Corps.

The same night, he took up a party of twenty volunteers, rescued three wounded men from a shell hole twenty-five yards from the enemy's trench, buried the bodies of two officers, and collected many identity discs, although fired on by bombs and machine guns.

Altogether, he saved the lives of some twenty badly wounded men, besides the ordinary cases that passed through his hands.

Chavasse refused to leave his post and, for two days, not only continued to perform his duties but, in addition, went out repeatedly under heavy fire to search for and attend to the wounded who were lying out.

Through his extraordinary energy and inspiring example, he was instrumental in rescuing many wounded who would have otherwise undoubtedly succumbed under the bad weather conditions.

Gladys Chavasse was mentioned in despatches 1945 at Monte Cassino, Italy, and killed in 1962 in an accident in France while crossing the road.

[14] Noel's nephew – Christopher Chavasse's son – was named in his honour and served as an aide to Bernard Montgomery, as well as being awarded the Military Cross in the Second World War.

Chavasse's medals, which had been left by his family to St Peter's College, Oxford (which had been founded by his father; his brother Christopher was its first Master), were purchased in 2009 by Lord Ashcroft for around £1.5 million, a world record price.

In 2017, Noel Chavasse was featured on a £5 coin (issued in silver and gold) in a six-coin set commemorating the centenary of the First World War produced by the Royal Mint.